


Fox Trap

by Lysical



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU (Comics), Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Big Brother Dick Grayson, Friendship, Gen, Illnesses, Protective Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-10
Updated: 2017-08-10
Packaged: 2018-12-13 14:47:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11762151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lysical/pseuds/Lysical
Summary: Kyle expected many things, coming to Gotham.Not this though.





	Fox Trap

**Author's Note:**

> References events from another of my fics, [Space Escape](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10331438). Not necessary to read it though. 
> 
> Written for Day One of Jason's Birthday Week over on Tumblr.
> 
> Prompt: One Friendship.

There were things that Kyle expected, having Jason for a friend. He was a Bat, after all, and Kyle had experience working with those. Running around the Multiverse with Jason and Donna had clued him in on other things, like the guns and the explosions, so that by the time he and Jason had gone from ‘reluctant teammates’ to ‘oh look we’re friends how did that happen’ Kyle knew enough about Jason not to be surprised by him. Not even when they got locked up in Space Jail and accidentally took over a planet.

Still. Gotham was a bit of an unknown quantity, Kyle supposed, because he had not been expecting this.

“This is a crime against humanity,” Jason said, swaying just slightly on his feet.

Kyle cleared his throat and pointed to what had Jason’s undivided attention. “It’s a gargoyle.”

“Shut up, his name is Francis.” Jason’s helmet was gone (Missing? Broken? Punted off the side of a building in a fit of pique? One could never tell with Jason), and he wasn’t wearing a mask underneath it, which was new. Normally there was a domino, because Jason’s helmet had a slight tendency to get shattered in combat, which Kyle supposed at least proved it was doing its job. Jason was otherwise in full costume in the middle of Gotham, so Kyle figured this was just another way of Rebelling Against the Man. Kyle had never been more happy that his own father was a complete non-entity than when Jason really got going about his own.

Jason gave the gargoyle a pat on the shoulder. “He’s my best friend.”

“I can think of like five people off the top of my head who would probably be really offended to hear that,” Kyle replied. He wasn’t one of them. He was still sometimes thrown off by the idea that he even counted Jason as a friend in the first place. They were good now, even if coming into Gotham felt like a giant disapproving Bat was going to fly out of nowhere and interrogate him about his intentions towards his son.

(Last time, Kyle had blithely answered ‘planetary conquest’ which had not gone down well despite their good intentions and Jason’s benevolent rule.)

Jason sniffed. His eyes were red and his nose sounded stuffed. He had no business standing on top of a building in the cold wind at three in the morning. “Francis understands the benefits of silence.”

Francis was currently wearing a top hat and had pink tinsel wrapped around his neck like a scarf.  

Jason coughed, then narrowed his eyes at Kyle. “Also, you’re wrong. I don’t even like five whole people.”

“My mistake. I forgot you only liked partial people.” Kyle drifted closer, eying how close Jason was to the edge of the building. “So, you’re sure Francis doesn’t like his new outfit? Maybe he likes standing out from the crowd.”

“Francis has taste,” Jason replied, ripping the tinsel off and throwing it off the side of the building, where it danced across the wind as it fell towards the ground below. The top hat followed only a few seconds later. “He would never stoop to this. He was assaulted.”

Jason was right, because not a second later something launched itself out of the shadows and tackled him around the middle, sending him sprawling back on the roof.

“Got you!” Nightwing grinned sharply, leaping to his feet and reaching down to pull Jason up by the arm. He kept one hand clamped down on Jason’s shoulder and nodded at Kyle. “Evening.”

Jason groaned. “I hate you.”

“I accept this,” Nightwing replied. He shook Jason by the shoulder a little, grin disappearing. “You’re supposed to be in bed, Jay. You’re sick.”

“I’m not,” Jason replied, and it was pretty convincing coming from a guy who looked like he was about two seconds from passing out. “I have important work to do. I can’t believe you used Francis against me.”

“Every advantage counts.” Nightwing shrugged. “Francis will be fine.”

Jason sniffed, rubbing his nose against his arm. “You owe him an apology.”

“You owe him better clothes,” Kyle said, grinning. “A top hat and tinsel? Really? Francis is better than that.”

Jason started laughing, soon dissolving into coughs. When he got his breathing under control he glared between Kyle and Nightwing. “I hate you both.”

“I’ll do better next time with my fashion choices,” Nightwing said, a blatant lie if Kyle had ever heard one. Nightwing gave his brother a long-suffering look. “Lord knows there’ll be one, with this kid.” He turned back to Kyle, eyes sliding somewhere beyond him. “Oh, hey, Batman.”

“Gah!” Kyle flew three feet higher in the air and whirled around, heart pounding.

There was nothing there. Behind him, he heard the both of them laughing.

He shook his head, twisting around in the air and scowling, folding his arms and hunching his shoulders. “Rude.”

Nightwing shrugged. “I take my fun where I can get it.” He frowned at Jason, brushing the back of his hand against his forehead. How he felt anything through the material of his gloves, Kyle didn’t know. “I gotta get this one home. Rain check on your play date, boys. Jason is too sick to be out.”

“Wow,” Kyle said, slowly, watching as Jason twisted and tried to punch his brother in the throat. “You really are a complete ass, aren’t you?”

“My superpower is making people think I’m not,” Nightwing replied, obnoxiously cheerful, and started wrestling Jason away. “See you around, White Lantern. You have about five minutes before Batman shows up. Your presence is very obvious, all bright and white like that.”

It was probably a joke. Kyle should stay right where he was and prove that Nightwing couldn’t trick him for a second time.

Except…it was possible Nightwing wanted him to do that, and that by sticking around he was playing right into his hands.

“Ergh, damn Bats,” Kyle muttered, shaking his head and rising higher into the air.

There was no need to tempt fate, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Whether the one friendship is Jason and Kyle or Jason and Francis is, uh, up to you.
> 
> Tumblr is [here](http://lysical.tumblr.com).


End file.
